


The Stranger and the King

by Griselda_Gimpel



Category: Armello (Video Game)
Genre: 5 Times, 5+1 Things, Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Lovers To Enemies, M/M, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-28
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-11-02 16:55:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20798081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Griselda_Gimpel/pseuds/Griselda_Gimpel
Summary: 5 times the King told the Stranger "I love you" and 1 time the King told the Stranger "Begone, you foul creature!"





	The Stranger and the King

1

The first time the King told the Stranger that he loved him was when the King was tasked with catching the flit-flit bird. It was a traditional rite of passage in the King’s homeland, and the King was having such a dreadfully difficult time at it. His arrows went awry, and his attempts to sneak up on his prey were to no avail.

When the day was drawing to the end and the King was ready to tear the forest apart in frustration, he walked under a branch and found that the Stranger was upon it. Though balanced awkwardly, the Stranger did not fall. In his paw was the flit-flit bird.

“You caught it!” exclaimed the King.

“What, this?” asked the Stranger. “No big deal about this. You want it?”

“Yes!” the King said.

“Oh, sure, go for it,” the Stranger said, dropping the flit-flit bird into the King’s outstretched hands.

“I love you!” said the King. “Thank you so much!”

“Huh, what? Oh, that little thing. Think nothing of it.”

2

The second time the King told the Stranger that he loved him was when the Stranger took the King to the land of Armello. That had been at a difficult time in the King’s life, but the new land enchanted him.

“Just look at all these forests and mountains and settlements!” the King gushed.

“The swamps are very nice,” the Stranger said. “Very swampy. Lots of muck.”

“I’ll take it!” the King proclaimed. He grabbed the Stranger and wrapped him in a playful hug. “You’re amazing! I love you!”

3

The third time the King told the Stranger he loved him was after the Stranger saved the King from a Bane. It happened quickly, and the King wasn’t quite sure what the Stranger did. The smaller cat just said “excuse me” and “if you don’t mind, I’ll just” and stepped to the side and suddenly the Bane was gone.

“What did you just do? That was awesome! Have I told you that I love you?”

“Yes, I think.”

“What was that?” the King asked.

“A Bane,” the Stranger said.

“An ex-Bane now!”

“No big thing,” the Stranger said. “You could have taken it, I’m sure.”

The King furrowed his brow. “That was rot, wasn’t it?”

“Not just rot,” the Stranger said. “Corruption.”

“Was that why it was so powerful?”

“Uh uh,” the Stranger said. “Don’t go thinking like that. There’s power in corruption, sure, but all that rot? No good. You don’t want to mess around with that.”

4

The fourth time the King told the Stranger he loved him was when the Stranger made the King the ruler of Armello. That wasn’t the official story, of course. The Stranger didn’t like to draw attention to himself. But the King knew the persuasion he’d used on the Bear Clan and the threats he’d made against the Rabbit Clan.

“Nice crown,” the Stranger told him after the coronation. He was sitting on the arm of a chair and attempting to sniff the underside of his knee.

“I do love it,” the King said, “and I love you.”

“Which do you love more?” the Stranger asked. He shifted an arm to scratch himself behind the ear.

The King smiled indulgently. “Can’t I have both?”

5

The fifth time the King told the Stranger he loved him was the day the Stranger left the palace.

“You’re corrupted,” the Stranger said. It was a rare straightforward sentence from him.

“I am,” the King said. “I found a way. I have all the benefits of corruption for only a tiny bit of rot.”

The Stranger shook his head. “No, no, no. Doesn’t work that way. Here, wait, I think I know a spell that can heal you.”

“Spells don’t work on me anymore,” the King informed him.

“No, no, no worries. Other ways to heal.”

“There’s nothing to heal,” the King insisted.

“No, no, no good,” the Stranger said. “Now I have to go.”

“What?”

“Got to leave,” the Stranger said. He inched along the wall toward the exit.

“Wait,” the King said. “Don’t go.”

“No choice,” the Stranger said.

“Stop,” order the King. “Please, I love you.”

The Stranger didn’t reply. He just left.

+1

The Stranger didn’t stay away from the palace forever. He returned when the King was very weak, accompanied by a hero. In the hero’s satchel were four spirit stones, which the hero had diligently collected with the Stranger’s assistance.

“Begone, you foul creature!” the King roared when he saw the Stranger.

"What?! That's no way to greet an old friend!" the Stranger said before he headed back the way he’d come.

The last time the Stranger had left the palace, he had headed to one of the dungeons of Armello with a purpose in mind. This time was different. The necessary spirit stones had been found. Now he left the palace because he did not wish to watch what came next. The King would be cured of his corruption, but while he would survive the process, the Stranger knew that the King would no longer be the ruler of Armello.

And the Stranger knew that the King would never forgive him for that.


End file.
